Distribution: tropical and subtropical areas. Both eyes on left side of head; eyes very small with little interorbital space. Preopercle margin covered with skin. Asymmetrical mouth. Caudal fin pointed and confluent with dorsal and caudal fins. Right pelvic fin usually undeveloped. No pectoral fins. Dorsal fin origin at or in front of fixed (lower) eye. Vertebrae usually 9 or 10 + 33-66. To about 48 cm maximum length, usually below 30 cm. Tongue fishes are found in warm waters of all oceans (between 40° latitudes). Most species occur in shallow water or estuaries; Symphurinae are in deep water of 300-1,900 m; many species are commercially important. Five species are known primarily from rivers.

Species/Synonymy list for the family Cynoglossidae as currently in FishBase

Important recommendation:

The list below must not be used as an authority reference synonymy list like those found in scientific published revisions, which must be the source to be used and cited eventually when they exist.

Rather, it reflects the current content of FishBase, and the progress with respect to synchronization with the Catalog of Fishes. However, we think it can be useful for users to assess the quality of information in FishBase, to start new work on the family, or to cross-check with other lists.

But we appreciate to be cited in publications when this list has been of any working value. In particular, for published scientific, we suggest then to cite it in the Material and Method section as a useful tool to conduct the research, but again, not as a taxonomic or nomenclatural authority reference.

Unless it is explicitly precised, the list is not complete, please search all original names published for the family in the Catalog of Fishes (genera, species), including those with uncertain or unknown status, that are not included in FishBase when they are not attached to a valid species.

In the column CofF, the digit indicates the status of synchronization with CofF:
0: Not checked; 1: Same status; 2: Different status; 3: Other combination; 4: Synonym in CofF; 5: Species/Subspecies issue; 6: Synonym of another species in CofF; 7: Not in CofF; 8: Should not be in CofF. The CofF version currently used is the one published on 23-07-2014 (Ref. 97102).

The list ordered as follows:

When subfamilies are recognized, nominotypical subfamily first then other subfamilies by alphabetical order.

Type genus of the family first (or of subfamily when subfamilies are recognized) then other genera by chronological order of description (and alphabetical order).

Type species of the genus first by chronological order (and alphabetical order), with last listed misapplied names in a light gray font.